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Dubai-based logistics operator Aramex posted a Q4 2023 net profit of 76.8 million dirhams ($21 million), more than double its profit for the year-ago period.
However, for full-year 2023, it posted a 22% decline in net profit to AED 129 million, the company said in a disclosure on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM).
The FY effort came below analysts’ mean estimate of AED149 million, according to LSEG data.
The courier firm attributed the decline to the increase in finance expenses associated with the MyUS acquisition loan taken in Q4 2022, and to a lesser extent, to the currency translation impact.
The company’s total revenue for Q4 reached AED1.52 billion, down by 1% from the same period last year.
CEO Othman Aljeda said the the company was closely monitoring the situation at the Red Sea. "With a large trucking fleet in the region, we are supporting our clients with alternative solutions. We are deploying our trucks via Dubai, United Arab Emirates and via Dammam, Saudi Arabia for the onwards journey of shipments arriving from Asia and via Port Said, Egypt for the onwards journey of shipments arriving from Europe."
Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ holds a 22.32% stake in Aramex, which it transferred to ADQ-owned Abu Dhabi Ports Co. in early 2022. Geopost SA holds 28% stake.
(Reporting by Brinda Darasha; editing by Seban Scaria)
